Teaching is Its Own Reward

As far back as I can remember, thanks to the extraordinary housewife my darling mother was, I wanted to be a housewife, and, hold your breath, have three children – Susie, Lucy and Nancy! Yes, as you can see, I named them too! But God had a very different plan and purpose for my life; for each of our lives. I guess my Creator knew better than to leave me to my own devices, and that’s how I landed up teaching in a college, something that never occurred to me even in my dreams! Before I knew it, I was on the faculty in a renowned women’s college in a quaint little city! How this came about is quite a story in itself which I shall reserve for another time.

I’d be lying through my teeth if I said I was ecstatic about my job, for, I knew nothing about relating to a room full of teens, let alone teach them! But this being my portion in life, I slipped into my role of a teacher, unconsciously emulating all that I had imbibed from the great teachers I had been blessed with in my alma mater, the one and only Madras Christian College – a beautiful life experience!

My charming cosmopolitan upbringing and my ‘wonder-full’ years of study at MCC helped me understand and employ the concept of “relating to” as opposed to “dealing with” other people. This was what I ventured to uphold in my “job”, which soon became my “Calling”. The learning curve for me as a teacher was as steep as it was necessary and useful. And learn, or, unlearn as the case may be, I did!

The beauty of being a teacher comes with the loss of the bliss of being student. No two ways about it. As a student, I did not pore over my books, but once a teacher, well, now, that’s a different story altogether! I quickly learnt that preparation for class is a serious affair, and that it was my responsibility to assist my dear students discover for themselves the sheer joy of learning. 

And, literature being what it is – holding a mirror up to life – well, I knew that it was up to me, their teacher, to be my students’ GPS as we navigate through the subtle nuances of life reflected in the different genres. ‘Uncovering’ a text in class can help us discover a positive or negative trait (a strength or a weakness) we never knew existed in us, and that that knowledge can help change us for the better. 

Teaching, as I learnt, helps us teachers grow and develop in ways unimaginable – to take the good, bad and ugly incidents of life in our stride, to know how to give and forgive, when to hold back and when to let go. My “Calling” taught me never to take anyone or anything for granted, to make wisdom and discernment, love, respect, understanding, and, above all, Prayer, my constant companions. 

Let us not forget that we teach through and with our life more than from a book. Our dear students look up to their teacher in more ways than one. We then become, when the need arises, counselor, confidante, a listening ear, a shoulder to lean on, and at times, yes, even a punching bag! The teacher and her teaching have to consciously and continuously cultivate a congenial atmosphere for all around. I lived in such an atmosphere every day of my student life in MCC and strove to give, even if in a little way, my dear students here what I had enjoyed back then, there. 

We teachers are more blessed than blessing. And no, I am not exaggerating!  When we teach with all our faculties wide open, we ingest qualities that can enhance and enrich our lives too; our interaction with others. Best of all, any open-minded teacher has the ability to absorb the goodness and cheer emanating from each of her dear students. I, for one, enjoyed going to every class of mine, leaving it thoroughly nourished in body, mind and spirit, thanks to all my dear students. Not that I did a good job in all my classes. Oh no, please don’t run away with wrong idea. There were times when I found myself falling flat on my face as a teacher. Gifted with the God-given quality of sensitivity, I could feel the pulse of my class and never failed to catch that knowing look of “here lies one who died waiting for the bell to ring!” Teaching is a humbling, life-long learning experience, a Reward in itself!

(Betty D’Couto is the former Head, PG & Research Centre of English, Lady Doak College. She taught there for 35 years.)